


A Hellish Vacation

by Feeshies



Category: Metalocalypse (Cartoon)
Genre: F/M, Oneshot, Pre-Canon, this exists now
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-25
Updated: 2021-01-25
Packaged: 2021-03-17 14:06:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,548
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28975575
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Feeshies/pseuds/Feeshies
Summary: Seth brings Amber along on his journey to gain fame and fortune.Aka: Amber watches Seth try to make a deal with the devil
Relationships: Amber/Seth (Metalocalypse)
Comments: 4
Kudos: 10





	A Hellish Vacation

**Author's Note:**

> This was based on a fic idea by LampMeeting/HeyMurphy:
> 
> "set sometime before seth and amber get married, seth seeks out the crossroads looking for the kind of fame and fortune that his brother has. amber insists on coming with her dumb boyfriend to keep him outta trouble and seth is kinda irritated, but when the blues devil shows up and tries to trick seth into selling his soul for a deal that's not even all that great, it's amber who saves seth from himself (and maybe makes him go a little starry-eyed haha) ;D"

Amber liked to believe that she was a supportive girlfriend. A lesser girlfriend would have left Seth when he decided to get frosted tips, but not Amber. She stuck by him throughout those strenuous two months, even giving him compliments when he asked for them. She listened to all of his new “get rich quick” schemes, and never once pointed out that these plans always failed to pay off. When Seth wanted to start a ska punk band, even though his only music experience came from playing the trumpet for half a year in his high school band class, guess who was always sitting in the front row of the venue. Dating Seth required a tolerance for impulsivity and the ability to go along with whatever half-baked idea he had rattling around in his head. This was fine. He never threw anything at her that she couldn’t handle.

But  _ this  _ was pushing it.

It was summer vacation, and was Amber attending a rooftop party with her friends? Was she lounging poolside with a mai tai in her hand? Was she at the beach, running into the water while the waves crashed around her?

No. She was sitting in a hot car while her boyfriend (who she loved with all her heart), drove them deeper into God-Knows-Where, Mississippi.

“It’s gonna pay off, babe, I promise.” Seth reassured her, for what felt like the millionth time. “Mitch swears by this.”

Mitch also “swore” that he could accurately guess any woman’s bra size just by looking at them, even though Amber always managed to prove him wrong. So it goes without saying that Amber was less than enthusiastic to listen to Mitch’s guidance

Of course, she didn’t say any of this to Seth. Supportive girlfriend, remember?

Amber checked her phone, even though she hadn’t been able to get a signal for the past 3 hours of driving. She just needed to do something with her hands.

It wasn’t like there was anything to look at outside of the car either. The flat, dry, red landscape looked like they were driving on the surface of Mars. Amber hadn’t seen any signs of civilization, or even another person, for miles.

“Okay, we’re now here.” Seth stopped the car.

Amber narrowed her eyes and peered out the window.

Apparently what Seth meant to say was “we’re nowhere.”

Because there was  _ nothing _ there.

The world outside was the same flat, dry landscape that Amber had been staring at for what felt like days now, and it stretched on for miles in every direction. Other than the faded path of a crossroad and an old wooden sign post, there was nothing to look at.

“I told you, it’s gonna pay off.” Seth tried to reassure her as he put the car in park. “If this works, I’ll finally be able to treat you right.”

He could treat her right by turning this car around and taking her to a resort, but she didn’t say that. Her stare said more than her words ever could.

It certainly seemed to make Seth anxious.

“I promise, okay?” He swallowed heavily and fixed the collar of his polo shirt. “You’re gonna want to get out of the car, though. Can’t leave the engine running.”

Amber rolled her eyes and opened the door.

_ Hey, Amber! What was it like outside of the car? _

__ Great question. It was hot, dry, and still not the resort she  _ should _ have been taken to. Seth will need to pay her back for the hundreds of dollars worth of makeup that she was sweating off. Seth will need to pay her back for a lot of things after this trip.

Speaking of Seth, her idiot boyfriend (who, again, she still loved very much) tossed her the keys and began walking towards the crossroads. He looked over his shoulder at her, but she made it clear with her face and body language that she was  _ not _ going to step away from the car. So while Seth stood by the sign post doing who knows what, Amber climbed onto the hood of the car so she could try to get a signal.

No bars. This was the worst summer vacation ever.

She stretched her arm up as high as it could go, but still nothing. The highest vantage point she had available to her was the car. She might have to climb onto the roof.

Just when she was about to do this very thing, Amber felt something she hadn’t encountered the entire time she was on this little vacation:

Wind.

At first, Amber was relieved, hoping that the air would feel less stale and hot, but then came the sand.

Oh, shit.

A curtain of sand blew over Amber and she ducked her head against the surface of the car hood. Fortunately, she managed to avoid getting any sand in her face. But she kept her head lowered, waiting for the sandstorm to pick up. But it never did. The air returned to that same boring stillness.

Amber slowly lifted her head There was no sandstorm. In fact, there were no traces of sand anywhere on her person or the car. It was as if it never happened. Amber’s sigh of relief turned into a sharp gasp when she looked back at the crossroads.

The spot where Seth had been standing was obscured by a blood red sandstorm, perfectly contained around the crossroads. It was like watching someone stirring up the sand in a giant aquarium and Amber was stuck on the other side of the glass. Even though the storm was happening just a few feet away from her, it was eerily silent. As the storm raged on, all that she could hear was the sound of her staggered breathing.

_ Seth! _

Her legs moved like jelly as she scampered up to the roof of the car. When she stood on her tiptoes, she could barely see into the eye of the storm. She saw the top of Seth’s head. He looked fine, at least. Well, he was still standing, that’s all Amber had to go off of. There was someone in front of him, but all Amber could see was the top of a dark wide-brimmed hat.

Amber held her phone out and snapped a pic.

When she inspected the photo, her phone almost clattered out of her hands.

It still wasn’t a great shot and Amber still wasn’t entirely sure what she was looking at, but when she zoomed in she could see a faint red glow emanating from the mysterious stranger. And beneath the brim of their hat, their face was just a stark white skull.

There was no time to think about logical explanations. Whatever was going on, Amber needed to put an end to it.

She jumped off the roof of the car, barely registering the pain in her ankles from landing on her chunky-soled sandals, and hopped into the driver’s seat. She shoved the key in the ignition, put the car in drive, and began barreling towards the storm.

Through the windows, the sand swirled around her, the particles clattering against the glass. Now that she was inside, she could hear the full power of the storm. She kept accelerating until the only sound louder than the wind was the blood roaring in her ears. Her heart pounded, her foot was tense from holding down the petal, but her brain was only focused on moving forward. Until she felt the car hit something.

The storm died down and Amber stepped outside, her breathing ragged. She looked back at the crossroads and relief washed over her when she saw that Seth was fine.

He was on the ground, staring at her with wide eyes.

“Babe, what did you-”

Amber walked over to the front of the car to inspect the damage.

Slumped against the hood was a tall, thin figure in a nicely-tailored maroon suit. Their hat was thrown to the side in the impact, showing their gaunt face with skin the color of old bones and half-hidden behind their long black hair. Not a skull. When Amber looked closer, she could see something trickling down the figure’s forehead. But instead of blood, it was a viscous black substance, like ink. That, combined with the general sense of dread Amber felt while staring at them, made her feel less bad about smashing them with her boyfriend’s car.

Seth had gotten back on his feet at some point and he joined Amber. When he saw the unconscious suited-figure, he audibly gasped and clasped his hands over his mouth.

“What the fuck did you do?”

Amber shrugged.

“Oh no, this is bad.” He began pacing in a small circle.

Amber looked back at the figure. Still unconscious. Okay, maybe she did feel a little bad. Maybe they could leave a note? It wasn’t like they could call an ambulance all the way out here.

“Do you know what you did?” Seth stopped pacing so he could face her. “You hit the fucking  _ devil _ with a car!”

Amber frowned. Sure, it could explain everything she had seen, but if he really expected her to believe...

“I was told that if I made a deal with him, it all would have paid off!” Seth dug his fingers through his hair. “This was my chance! Now my ticket to success got  _ hit by my fucking car! _ ”

Amber poked the “devil” with her foot. Maybe now she could take his suit. It looked nice, and this way she could get  _ something _ from this “deal.”

Wait, something was wrong.

As Seth continued freaking out behind her, Amber took a closer look at the “devil”. That faint red glow she noticed in the photo had returned. And the black “blood” was slowly seeping back into their wounds. That was cause enough for alarm, but then the figure opened a single milky white eye.

“Oh no,” Seth was still stuck in his own worries. “Dad’s gonna kill me when he sees the windshield. How am I supposed to explain-”

Amber tackled Seth to the ground, at the same time another crimson sandstorm exploded around them. 

Seth’s alarmed shout was muffled by the whistling winds. She looked down at him, his pale skin red under the unearthly lighting. Amber didn’t bother to hide the fear from her face, because she could tell he was feeling the same way when he looked up at her. The two of them, alone together in the eye of a storm while the devil was resurrecting behind them.

She always had a feeling it would end this way.

The shadow of a tall figure cast over them and soon the whistling of the wind was joined by the sound of harsh laughter.

“You were right, Seth.” Their voice sounded like multiple voices layered on top of each other to a dizzying effect. “Your girl certainly is worth selling your soul for.”

Amber moved off of Seth, but she kept her arms looped around his shoulders. There was no doubt about it anymore. The figure standing before them was the devil. That realization was almost enough to distract Amber from their words, but not quite.

_ Selling your soul… _

__ She looked to Seth for answers, but, for what must have been the first time in his life, he looked too stunned to speak.

The devil must have recognized the look of confusion on her face.

“Seth offered up his soul in exchange for fame and fortune.” They explained. “But I believe it goes without saying that the terms of the contract have changed.”

The storm darkened and sped up around them. If Amber hadn’t been so terrified, she would have given him her best “we will talk about this later” face. Instead, she clung tighter to his shoulders and allowed herself to find a small amount of comfort in the protective way he held her.

“Not because of your little stunt,” the devil continued, still addressing Amber. “But I’ve seen Seth’s soul, and I’m not impressed.”

“Hey,” Seth protested weakly.

“However, if Seth is willing to sacrifice something  _ actually _ valuable-”

“Fine!” Seth shouted over the wind. “Take the car! It’s my dad’s anyway. Just let us go!”

“What? No, I-” They sighed and waved their hand, conjuring a small stack of papers out of the storm. “I am willing to overlook your misconduct against me, and provide you with the fame and fortune you seek-”

“Sweet!” Seth held Amber tighter. “What did I tell ya, babe? I told you it would pay-”

“In exchange for  _ her _ soul.”

Though the storm was still raging around them, the entire world went silent. Even under the intense Mississippi heat, Amber felt cold. She gripped Seth’s shoulders tighter and looked at him with an expression she hoped read as “please don’t sell my soul to the devil”.

Seth’s arms slipped away, leaving Amber feeling even more cold, and she watched in disbelief, her heart slowly shattering as she watched Seth stand up and walk towards the contract. She wanted to scream at him, she wanted to run away, but she couldn’t find the words or strength to do either. All she could do was watch in silent horror.

The devil’s jagged smile widened as Seth stood before them and reached for the contract.

Amber squeezed her eyes shut.

This truly was the worst summer vacation ever.

Then came the sound of paper ripping.

Amber opened her eyes to see Seth dropping the torn remains of the contract to the ground as the devil’s smile faded.

“That’s my girl! You’re not taking her fuckin’ soul!”

“I wasn’t going to  _ take _ it, it’s an exchange. If you don’t want-”

Seth punched the devil in the face, causing them to almost trip and stumble over their coat. They didn’t get a chance to regain their balance as Seth continued to wail on them.

“Amber isn’t going anywhere with you!”

“You just had to say ‘no’ to the deal!”

Amber dug her phone out of her pocket and started taking pictures.

Eventually, the devil got tired of Seth’s bullshit and blasted him backwards with a burst of red sand, sending him flying over Amber’s head. She took a photo of that too.

The devil dusted off their coat and looked back at Amber.

“No hard feelings?”

She gave them the finger.

They sighed,

“You know what? You two deserve each other.”

Amber shrugged. She knew that.

“The one time someone bothers to actually come to the crossroads…” they muttered to themselves. “Whatever, I don’t need this right now. Take care.”

The devil waved their hand and an old automobile materialized out of thin air. They stepped into the driver’s side and sped off, disappearing over the horizon.

Amber waited until they were gone before walking back over to Seth. She helped him up, brushing the remaining sand off of his clothes and hair.

“Hey, uh,” He began shakily. “When you hit the devil with the car, that was kinda hot.”

Amber laughed and punched his arm.

“I’m serious! You were seriously badass!”

Amber rolled her eyes and pulled him into a hug.

“Does this mean you forgive me for almost selling my soul?”

Amber thought for a moment, then shrugged.

She was a supportive girlfriend, after all.


End file.
